IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A veteran Iowa criminal investigator said he was fired Wednesday in retaliation for complaining about the governor's vehicle speeding through highway traffic, an assertion state officials rejected.

Special Agent in Charge Larry Hedlund of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation learned of his termination during a meeting in Des Moines, following a 2 ½ -month personnel investigation launched days after he filed an April 29 complaint about Gov. Terry Branstad's SUV traveling 90 mph.

Hedlund said his firing after a 25-year law enforcement career was devastating, and that he would "take to my grave" a belief that it was done because of his complaint. His attorney, Tom Duff, vowed to file a lawsuit alleging wrongful termination.

"This firing is a real loss for the people of the state of Iowa," Duff said of Hedlund, who received a top honor for assisting crime victims in 2008. "If your child turned up missing or your family member was the victim of a crime, you would want Larry on the case."

State officials denied retaliation. A termination document said that Hedlund made "negative and disrespectful" comments in emails about DCI Director Chari Paulson, addressed her disrespectfully during a conference call, and drove his vehicle on a vacation day. It noted he had no prior discipline.

"After careful consideration, it is apparent that your employment with the Iowa Department of Public Safety has been counterproductive to the best interests of the Department," the document states. "Your actions and deportment represent behavior that is unacceptable and warrants discharge."

Hedlund, 55, initiated an April 26 pursuit of an SUV that zipped past him doing "a hard 90" mph on Highway 20 in northern Iowa. He pursued the vehicle and asked dispatchers to send a trooper to make a stop. A trooper clocked the SUV at 84 mph and raced to catch up, but ultimately didn't stop the vehicle after seeing it was another trooper who was driving Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds.

Hedlund complained to superiors that the high-speed pursuit endangered safety, noting the vehicles had driven past a school bus. He said he believed speeding by the governor's driver was common because of pressure to meet his schedule, and Branstad shouldn't be above the law.

Paulson responded by asking Hedlund why he was driving his state car during the pursuit on a vacation day. Hedlund was placed on leave two days later pending a review of misconduct allegations.

Hedlund said he sacrificed his vacation day to meet with a retired investigator in Cedar Rapids, and was passed by the governor's SUV on his drive home.

The termination document quotes emails in which Hedlund criticized Paulson over her plan to require investigators to type reports, a duty that had been performed by civilians. He wrote that the change would "go backwards about 20 years" and showed "a glaring and fundamental lack of understanding and appreciation" of agents.

Hedlund said that he was expecting superiors to order him to stop the criticism. But he said "everything changed" after his Branstad complaint, and he suddenly faced misconduct allegations over incidents they'd never mentioned.

"State officials denied retaliation. A termination document said that Hedlund made "negative and disrespectful" comments in emails about DCI Director Chari Paulson, addressed her disrespectfully during a conference call, and drove his vehicle on a vacation day. It noted he had no prior discipline"

Sounds like they REALLY had to reach to come up with a "legitimate" reason for firing him. Pathetic.